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Sunday, December 31, 2017

I'm planning on starting out the year by focusing on small moments of joy, the little things everyday. I hope that after the year is done, I can put together a photo book documenting our year. Life has been nonstop one thing after another and I've lost sight of what's really important. Can you relate? Do you ever feel like you're missing the little things that make being a family so amazing? The Moments Matter monthly photo challenge can help with that. In previous months, it's helped me to focus more on the details of our days. I hope that other mommas can get the same rewards I've found with it. Often, I've found the photo prompts lead me to look for moments in our day that match the challenge. Other days it gives me a great boost to create an activity that suits the day's theme. That's the beauty of this project... it allows us to focus more intently on ourselves, our family, or just life in general.

There are several ways you can join me in this project:

Use the photo prompts to capture moments in your day that fit them.Join me on Instagram and share them or keep them for just you and your family to enjoy.

Use the topics to hone your photography skills.

You can also use the prompts as inspiration for activities for you to do with your children.

If you can’t participate every day, no worries.Just post when the prompts speak to you and relate to the moments in your day.

Share whatever photos you like with the tag #momentsmatter to share the special moments in your day.

Here are the photo prompts for this month:

Don't forget to use the hashtag #momentsmatter when you share! See you on Instagram!

Follow Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

Thursday, December 28, 2017

The New Year
is fast approaching, making it the perfect time to do a year in review for kids! Use this free printable to create a memory that can be repeated year after
year to document changes in each child’s interests. This is an activity that
can be done with kids of any ages.

Year in Review Printable for Kids

It’s amazing
how much children can change from year to year, so documenting each year
provides a wonderful snapshot of how their little minds work through their
growth.

Preparation

To prepare
for this activity, print off the free printable sheet.Provide
children with crayons, markers, and pencils to use to color and fill out the
sheet. A recent picture, trimmed down to fit the frame on the printable, may
also be desired.

Activity

This
activity can be done with a child of any age. For children that can write, it’s
a beautiful way to document their handwriting as it changes over the years.
But, even if they can’t write, they can narrate while an adult writes down
their response. Children can opt to draw a self-portrait in the photo box or a
recent picture can be attached with a glue stick.

Once the
printable is filled out, there are multiple things you can do with it. You can
file it away with the child’s school and artwork from the previous year. Or
slip it into a clear protective sleeve in a portfolio folder and keep adding
each year that is completed to make a book.

In addition
to this activity, you can also create time capsule ornaments using empty
plastic ornaments from the craft store that contain items relevant to the child’s
interests that year. Find out how to make them here.

This free
printable can be used year after year to create a paper time capsule of a child’s
life. It makes for a very special keepsake to look back at over the years.

Follow Crayon Freckles on Facebook to get post previews and hear about other great activities! You can also follow Crayon Freckles on Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

Saturday, December 16, 2017

I'm not sure if you know it or not, but I'm a contributor at the amazing site, The Preschool Toolbox. My most recent contribution is a Snowman Color Matching Game Free Printable. This activity is fun for toddlers and preschoolers at this time of year.